Posted by Greg Diblasi on September 28, 2021 1:51 pm | Comments Off

Difference Between Microphone Plugs & Jacks

Even with the continued rise of wireless technology, many high-quality headsets, microphones, and other audio equipment still rely on wired connections to boost sound quality and functionality. How these devices plug into computers and larger pieces of equipment matters, as does the material used to make the contact points.

When purchasing audio hardware, it’s important to know the difference between a microphone plug and a microphone jack. A plug is a male-type connector that users insert into the equipment, whereas the jack is the matching female-type connector the plug goes into. For example, a microphone plug will be inserted into a speaker or a computer’s jack. Plugs and jacks come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, and materials. When selecting plugs and jacks, it’s important to ensure the proper sizing and other properties for each component to ensure it will function in its intended application.

Understanding Microphone Plugs and Jacks

Microphone plugs and jacks play a critical role in wired audio systems, affecting everything from sound quality to equipment reliability. These components come in several formats, including 3.5mm, 6.35mm, and dual-pin connections. Some use TS or TRS configurations to carry mono or stereo signals.

Amphenol NEXUS Technologies Microphone Plugs & Jacks

At Amphenol NEXUS Technologies, we specialize in building durable microphone plug and microphone jack components to give our users equipment they can rely on. Our designs focus on building rugged solutions that can handle a variety of conditions.

For example, we incorporate nylon into our microphone plug designs. Nylon is a synthetic material that has broad use cases ranging from clothing to electronics. This material is corrosion-resistant, insulative, wear-resistant, lightweight, and easy to customize. These properties make nylon an optimal choice for protective housings used on our ruggedized microphone plugs and microphone jacks used in even the harshest applications.

Aside from the protective nylon housings, we’ve ruggedized our components by choosing strong materials and designing the jack-plug contacts to withstand hectic conditions. Beryllium is very ductile, making it an excellent choice for forming detailed geometries with specific dimensions. Adding nickel plating protects the beryllium by reducing the potential for diffusion and degradation. It also adds a bright, appealing finish.

Microphone plugs and microphone jacks from Amphenol NEXUS Technologies are built to handle heavy use and the physical demands of military environments. An aviation microphone plug or military microphone plug must perform reliably under vibration, moisture, and extreme temperatures. In these conditions, a military spec microphone jack guarantees a secure connection in helmets, field radios, and communication headsets. Material selection and proper fit directly impact signal quality—poor connectors lead to distortion or dropouts. High-grade plugs and jacks used in defense, aerospace, and emergency systems maintain consistent, high-quality audio. Choosing the right audio jack for microphone setups is critical for dependable voice transmission.

With components built for extreme wear resistance and failsafe capabilities, users of our microphone plug and microphone jacks can count on a strong audio jack microphone connection in rugged environments. This is what makes our solutions so well-suited for use as components in emergency commercial, municipal, and military communication systems.

Amphenol NEXUS Technologies for Rugged Applications

Since 1961, our team at Amphenol NEXUS has been designing and manufacturing microphone plugs, microphone jacks, and audio jack microphone components for a broad range of rugged application environments. We specialize in microphones and OEM headsets that are built to last and provide a trustworthy audio connection.